Leminkaiya
Disclaimer: I do not own either "The Hobbit" or "Avatar: The Last Airbender" but the wonderful lady firebender in the story is my precious.
NOTE: We've reached the second movie at last! And now things will be moving much, much faster. There's still a lot of ground to cover so I'm going to pick up the pace. I decided to breeze through Beorn's part because nothing significant would be different in this story so there's no need to dwell on it.
I found that wandering around Mirkwood provided a good opportunity to explore some of Ainara's past so you will see that here (with a special cameo from one of my favorite AtLA characters). The rest of the events pretty much follow what happened in the film.
Enjoy.
CHAPTER NINE
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Freed from some of their burdens, the company was able to advance with greater speed. They were still a long way from Erebor and Durin's Day would soon be upon them.
But even on the road there were still some opportunities for the company to share stories by the campfire. Now that there was less tension among them, the nights passed considerably more pleasantly. Ainara and Bilbo were more at ease with the dwarves and now even Thorin asked the firebender to talk about her country's culture and history. He had always had a genuine interest in her story but his suspicion had prevented him from expressing it and now they both enjoyed sharing tales of ancient kingdoms, great kings, and brave warriors.
She also told them about her experiences with dragons and this time, a subject which they were most eager to hear about.
"Because of our powers, my people have always had a strong connection to dragons," she recounted, "and during my time, there still were some of these creatures roaming our lands."
"Did they destroy everything too?" Ori asked anxiously.
Ainara shook her head. "The dragons in my world never attacked anyone without provocation," she explained, "in fact, we were the ones who forced them to fight back."
Such a different account of dragons made the dwarves mutter amongst themselves. Their experience had given them a natural prejudice against these beasts so it was difficult for them to believe dragons capable of anything but cruelty. Bilbo, for his part, had always loved tales about dragons and he listened to his friend with growing fascination.
"One of leaders, Fire Lord Sozin, began the tradition of hunting dragons as the ultimate sport," Ainara continued, "It was believed that anyone who managed to slay a dragon would earn the title "Dragon" and would acquire legendary firebending powers. Many had been seduced by this prospect, myself included. And so it was that the few dragons that remained in the world were relentlessly slain by ambitious firebenders."
The memories of her days of rage and recklessness suddenly appeared before her. She had been young and eager for glory and greatness, like so many of her generation. They were proud of being part of a legacy of conquest and control and they had all sought to prove themselves the strongest. She had always dreamed of slaying a dragon and earning that revered title.
But she had never succeeded in slaying one by herself. She had always travelled with several other firebenders. They would compete with each other to see who was the strongest. When they found a dragon, each one would try to fight it on his or her own. But in the end, it would always take a joint effort for them to defeat the beast and survive its wrath. And they barely escaped alive each time.
It was only after slaying three of the ancient creatures that Ainara and her friends realized the danger, futility, and cruelty of their sport. They saw that dragons did them no harm and only fought back when provoked. There was no real glory in murdering innocent beings. So they vowed that they would never again participate in dragon slaying. But by then, dragons had become so rare and were soon believed to be almost extinct. And it always pained Ainara to remember that they had nearly wiped out a whole race of powerful beings because of their greed and ambition.
"Becoming a dragonslayer is one of the things I regret the most and I never thought I would ever face a dragon again," Ainara concluded gravely, "but when Gandalf mentioned one, I could not help but be interested. Although now of course, this is more than just for personal glory. If I can help you all slay the dragon and reclaim your homeland, that will be the greatest honor. And perhaps a way to make amends for my past mistakes."
"And you needn't feel guilty about fighting this one," Bofur reassured her, "he is a real menace and has caused so much pain and suffering."
"Do not hesitate with this one," Dwalin added, "he will not show you mercy so you must treat him the same way."
"Old Smaug will not be expecting you, that's for certain," Nori remarked with a smile.
"And we've seen how you powerful you can be even when you hold yourself back," Fili said excitedly.
"You can be frightening when you're angry," Bilbo added timidly. Ainara grinned at him.
"Oh, you haven't seen me truly angry," she told them mischievously, "not nearly as angry as I can be."
There was a dangerous glow in her golden eyes that intimidated them all and they were simply relieved that she was on their side. This brief display of ferocity also gave them hope that the dragon would finally be defeated.
"Then it seems that beast has met his match," Thorin declared proudly, "and we are looking forward to seeing you triumph."
The firebender suddenly felt self-conscious, looking all their expectant faces. She did not want to make any promises she could not honor.
"I will try my best," she said humbly, but even this was met with a cheer from the rest of the company.
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As a way of further integrating Bilbo and Ainara into the company and dwarfish culture in general, Ori suggested that they braid the hair of their two companions. Bilbo protested awkwardly but eventually relented though there was not much the dwarves were able to do with his short, curly hair no matter how much they tried.
Ainara, who had long, straight black hair, agreed immediately. She watched with amusement as Dori and Nori argued with Bifur and Bofur over which traditional styles they would use. They had been so busy bickering that they failed to notice that Kili and Fili had already finished the job. As Ainara proudly showed off her newly braided hair, the rest of the company looked approvingly.
"It's a pity you don't have a beard," Bombur said with a sigh. Ainara smiled at him apologetically while the other dwarves roared with laughter and Gandalf looked on in amusement.
All of this was familiar to the firebender. During her years in the Fire Nation army, she had formed a close bond with her fellow soldiers. They had endured so much together from their training to specific missions. They had traveled around the world together and faced many an enemy. They protected each other until the very end.
But as much as being in the company reminded her of those happy years, she was also acutely aware of how easily everything could fall apart. They were not in a state of war but the journey they were taken was fraught with more than enough danger. Added to the enemies who were relentlessly chasing them was still the looming threat of the dragon. Growing attached to her new friends was a great risk and yet she could not help it. She had missed this and she was determined to do everything in her power to proven history from being repeated.
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While fleeing from their enemies, the company spent a short time in the home of the fearsome shapeshifter Beorn. Their host had been very hospitable to them despite his mistrust of strangers and had even provided them ponies to ride until they reached the edge of Mirkwood.
"This forest feels sick," Bilbo observed what they all thought as they stood at the Elven gate, "as if a disease lies upon it."
Before entering the forest, Gandalf warned them all to stay on the path and gave them strict instructions about reaching Erebor. They were dismayed that the wizard was leaving them but he assured them that he would not have done so had it not been for something of greater importance.
"Dark forces are at work in these woods," the wizard told the firebender ominously, "I would advise you to keep your firebending to a minimum. You would not want to disturb the dangerous, ancient beings that reside there. Be very careful."
"I understand," the firebender replied gravely.
"This is not the greenwood of old," the wizard warned them all, "the very air of the forest is heavy with illusion. It will seek to enter your mind and lead you astray. You must never leave the path. Or you will never find it again."
Warily the company entered the treacherous woods. It was unlike any forest they had ever passed through. Hardly any light pierced through the thick, tangled branches and shadows seemed to move around them. Eerie sounds filled the stuffy air and after every step they found it more and more difficult to breathe. They walked on, as if in a daze. Every now and then they had to shake their heads because they began to see peculiar visions.
In particularly dark patches of the forest, Ainara tried to illuminate the path with a flame in her hand but she found that the forest itself affected her firebending. She was barely able to maintain a steady flame though it usually was the easiest thing to do. The flame in her hand flickered and she felt herself grow weak and light-headed. She remembered Gandalf's warning and decided to avoid firebending as much as she could.
And though they had tried their best to follow Gandalf's instructions, they eventually lost the path. In their struggle to find it again, they began to fall more and more under the forest's evil spell.
Something had gone very wrong in those woods and it was interfering the normal flow of energy not just for her but for the others as well. The dwarves moved sluggishly and began babbling. Bilbo blinked and struggled to keep awake though he felt drowsier and drowsier as they moved on.
"Is there no end to this accursed forest?" Thorin cried, his voice echoing across the trees.
"We're lost!" Dwalin exclaimed, "And we've lost the sun."
The dwarves began bickering amongst themselves, trying to figure out what direction to take. Unbeknownst to them, Bilbo had began climbing one of the trees to try, seeking the sun.
Meanwhile, Ainara felt her mind drifting far away and soon she no longer saw the forest around her. Instead, she seemed to have returned to familiar surroundings from a long time ago.
She was in her family garden and she could hear giggling from behind one of the ancient trees. A young girl was hiding behind it and she recognized herself during one of the many times she snuck away from her uncle's boring lectures on Fire Nation military history. Being young and stubborn, she had not yet realized the importance of these tedious lessons and preferred to go off on her own to practice her bending.
The scene changed and it was an older, more confident Ainara dealing the final blows to her opponent. Skillfully, she launched flames from her feet as they circled the ground and each attack was so well calculated that her adversary fell to his feet and surrendered reluctantly. It was the first Agni Kai she had ever won and it had been against an arrogant young soldier who had insulted her family's honor. Her victory not only humbled him but also made him grow to truly respect her. He never said an unkind word towards her family or to anyone else again.
This dissolved into another memory. She was in full armor, having been awarded a medal for her valor on the field. But she was not smiling. Instead, she stood straight and still before a grey joint headstone, staring silently at the names of her parents. Someone placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"I know they would have been very proud of you," General Iroh told her reassuringly.
She had simply nodded and continued to stare at the headstone.
But this faded too and a memory she had long tried to keep buried now resurfaced and she had no choice but to relive its horrors.
A battlefield strewn with corpses. She had stood at such a place before but never one like this. Usually there were casualties from different sides. After all, a war was theoretically between two opposing forces. But this time was different.
All around her were not just her countrymen but her comrades, her brothers in arms. They had trained together, traveled together, fought together, mourned together. And now, they were gone, slain by their own people, even their own kin, men who were loyal to the Fire Lord.
He had sensed their disapproval of his principles and strategies so he had sent a company of his most merciless soldiers to slaughter them all. No one could oppose the Fire Lord in his own nation and live to tell the tale.
The smell of smoke and blood and death was suffocating but somehow she was still breathing. She had suffered many injuries, physical and otherwise and now, all she could do was wait for her life to come to an end. What else was there to live for?
But then, she felt someone carry her gently away from this nightmare. She was too weak to understand what was happening. And when she awoke, days later, she was in a strange, new world.
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Ainara's eyes blinked open as she felt her body hit the ground with a thud.
Something was blocking her view, something white and viscous. As she slowly regained consciousness, she realized that her whole body was wrapped in this pale, sticky, foul-smelling substance.
"Ugh," she cried in disgust as she wriggled and tried to move the rest of her body.
She felt frantic movement around her and her the voices of the dwarves. She tore out of the white wrapping impatiently and even burning it with her bending. It was such a relief to be wide awake again. She joined the others as they broke free but she soon saw the creatures that had trapped them in those cocoons - giant spiders.
Luckily, her fighter's instincts took over and she instantly launched fireball after fireball at the vile creatures. The spiders recoiled in horror but continued to attack the company. The dwarves slashed and stabbed at the monsters and Ainara did all she could to help. Some of her strength had returned and she was able to send many spiders to their deaths. But despite their combined effort, more of the creatures kept coming fast and they knew that they would soon be outnumbered.
As she blasted fire at another spider's face, Ainara noticed that other beings were arriving and even with the limited light of the forest, she recognized elves descending from the tops of the trees.
"Reinforcements!" she thought with joy and relief. Remembering the friendship showed by Lord Elrond and his household, she had no reason to treat them as enemies.
But quite soon she realized that these elves were very different from those she met in Rivendell. No sooner had the elves slain the spiders, their arrows and blades were aimed at the dwarves.
"Fight them off!" Dwalin had shouted, "They are our enemies!"
But Ainara reacted too late and though she had surprised several of the elves with blasts of fire, they had evaded her attacks skillfully and now had several arrows and blades aimed at her throat.
The leader shouted orders to his men and all the dwarves were marched roughly away from the forest and into the realm of the woodland elves.
Ainara had been initially reluctant to fight them since they had just saved her and the dwarves from the spiders but seeing the hostile look on their fair faces, she decided that they were not to be trusted. Foul and hideous creatures were easy to fight but these new adversaries were all the more dangerous since they were beautiful.